W&O expanded its team in the newly opened office in Brazil. The two new positions, a Commercial Director and Customer Services Delivery Manager, are focused on business development and customer service to expand W&O’s footprint in the Brazilian maritime industry and throughout South America.
“Establishing commercial operations in Brazil provides tremendous opportunity for us, yet it requires a tremendous amount of international coordination and a high level of customer service to ensure we are successful,” said Michael Hume, President and CEO of W&O. “These positions are essential to servicing our customers and ensuring efficient project management, which requires a strong coordinated effort between our North American and South American branches. We are confident that these two individuals, who are Brazilian citizens that have worked with U.S. companies extensively in the past, are going to best serve our customers and grow our presence in Brazil.”
Adriana Faria de Araujo joins W&O as Commercial Director with more than a decade of marine industry experience. As Commercial Director, Araujo’s main focus is business development and leveraging her extensive network of ship owner/operator, shipyard and government contacts to expand W&O’s product and service delivery. As W&O continues to grow in Brazil, Araujo is responsible for developing and maintaining the infrastructure necessary to service the South American market. Araujo has extensive experience in Brazilian and international maritime law, having previously served as a lawyer for the Maritime Dutch Association in Brazil, and has her master’s in offshore oil and gas management from Fluminense Federal University (UFF) in Brazil. Araujo will be based in the Brazil office.
As Customer Services Deliver Manager, Valeria Jackson is responsible for ensuring efficient project management and customer delivery, while also identifying processes and procedures to continually improve the coordination effort between the North American and Brazil offices. Jackson’s extensive experience in international contract management and process optimization positions her well to ensure that logistical operations, transactions, and product and service delivery exceed customer expectations. Also a lawyer by trade, earning her juris doctorate from Catholic University in Brazil, Jackson has experience in the marine, logistics and financial industries. Jackson will be based in W&O’s headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla.